tidy

adjective

ti·dy | \ˈtī-dē

tidier; tidiest

Definition of tidy

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : neat and orderly in appearance or habits : well ordered and cared for

b : methodical, precise a tidy mind

2 : large, substantial a tidy profit

3 : adequately satisfactory : acceptable, fair a tidy solution to their problem

4 : properly filled out : plump

tidy

verb

tidied; tidying

Definition of tidy (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

: to put in order tidy up a room

intransitive verb

: to make things tidy tidying up after supper

tidy

noun

plural tidies

Definition of tidy (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : a usually compartmentalized receptacle for various small objects

2 : a piece of fancywork used to protect the back, arms, or headrest of a chair or sofa from wear or soil

Other Words from tidy Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about tidy

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Other Words from tidy

Adjective

tidily \ˈtī-də-lē

\ adverb

tidiness \ˈtī-dē-nəs

\ noun

Verb

tidier noun

Examples of tidy in a Sentence

Adjective

He has always been a tidy person. She earns a tidy salary. They paid a tidy sum for the house.

Verb

I tidied the house before they arrived.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

These are all her tips and tricks to keeping your freezer tidy and clean. — Audrey Bruno, SELF, "How to Clean Your Freezer the Easy Way," 5 Dec. 2018 From the hallway of the tidy, one-story brick home on Index Court Northeast, the younger Gatewood could see his father’s body on the floor, just inside the door of the back bedroom, lying in a pool of blood. — Christine Clarridge, The Seattle Times, "‘So much blood’: Son haunted by questions after Renton police’s ‘shoddy’ investigation of his dad’s death," 4 Dec. 2018 Its position as Africa’s No. 2 copper producer behind Congo helped spur economic growth, bringing shopping malls and tidy brick homes to the landlocked nation. — Alexandra Wexler, WSJ, "Countries Push to Extract More Cash from Big Mining Companies," 18 Nov. 2018 Though some might get lucky with a nice, tidy roommate, others have to deal with the absolute worst. — Yerin Kim, Seventeen, "13 Roommate Horror Stories That’ll Make You Want to Live Alone," 13 July 2018 Driving a team of horses, Washington and his friend traveled hours to Aunt Vina’s remote and tidy home. — Kate Masur, Smithsonian, "How One Amateur Historian Brought Us the Stories of African-Americans Who Knew Abraham Lincoln," 20 Feb. 2018 The house seen in the documentary was actually tidier. — Stephanie Nolasco, Fox News, "Jackie Kennedy Onassis was 'horrified' of recluse aunt, cousin living in crumbling Grey Gardens, book claims," 12 Sep. 2018 The wedding appears to provide a tidy and happy ending as both Markle and Adams exit the show. — Michelle Ruiz, Vogue, "You're Cordially Invited... to Watch New Video of Meghan Markle Getting Married on Suits," 19 Apr. 2018 Maldonado opened the cupboards in his tidy kitchen. — Sarah Varney, Washington Post, "Time’s Running Out: The Frail In Puerto Rico Face End Of Hurricane Relief Programs," 30 Mar. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

So what would the best-selling author and tidying guru debut next? — Bridget Hallinan, Condé Nast Traveler, "Marie Kondo's Revolutionary New Product Is...a Shoebox," 24 July 2018 Years later, that same urge to tidy led to her bestselling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, which teaches readers to throw away items that don't bring them joy. — Kate Storey, Good Housekeeping, "Marie Kondo Reveals a Nervous Breakdown Led to Her Joy Method," 5 Jan. 2016 The 2017 Vikings tidied their path to a division title by knocking out the star quarterback of the rival Green Bay Packers, Aaron Rodgers, and then defeated the New Orleans Saints in their postseason opener on a 61-yard touchdown as time expired. — Ben Shpigel, New York Times, "The Eagles Crushed Vikings Fans’ Hopes. Now They’re Crashing Their Super Bowl Party.," 30 Jan. 2018 The physical therapists and occupational therapists and nurses and that woman Bianca who tidied up, telling him about her son, the high school basketball player. — Mike Jensen, Philly.com, "Former Temple big man Ron Rollerson, having lost a leg, finds a new sport," 24 May 2018 In every World Cup city, there were signs that the local government had made an effort to tidy up. — Ivan Nechepurenko, New York Times, "Peeking Around Corners in the World Cup’s Provincial Cities," 14 July 2018 They were spotted tidying up the stadiums after their matches. — Fox News, "Gutfeld: Trump is succeeding and it's the media's nightmare," 24 June 2018 Wash the dishes; tidy up after playtime; be extra creative and fun - habits from my own babysitting days, gleaned from a family expectation of strong work ethic. — chicagotribune.com, "Teens face a gender pay gap, too. Here's how to help them navigate it.," 13 June 2018 Maybe modern masculinity really is fragile enough that men can’t tidy up without pretending to symbolically slay the great mother dragon, embodiment of chaos, in an epic battle for order. — Laurie Penny, Longreads, "Peterson’s Complaint," 12 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The appeal of my WeWork space is fairly obvious: Someone else maintains the free coffee, waters the plants, and tidies up the sun dappled work spaces. — Aaron Pressman, Fortune, "Data Sheet—Why WeWork Has to Pay Up for Rapid Growth," 25 Apr. 2018 The most popular affordable robot vacuum A good robot vacuum can help you keep your home tidy between deep cleanings, and the Eufy RoboVac 11+ is the #1 best-selling robot vacuum on Amazon right now. — Samantha Gordon, USA TODAY, "These are the 5 best Amazon deals for the first day of spring," 20 Mar. 2018 The truth escapes them that within a month, their designer efforts will be covered in old pizza boxes and dirty clothes exactly like the other rooms -- until mom shows up a day early for homecoming and tidies things up a bit. — Beth Thames, AL.com, "Oprah for president? She's served her country already," 10 Jan. 2018 YOUR PROPERTY TIDY Have the lawn mowed, the plants watered and the pool cleaned. — Ronda Kaysen, New York Times, "How to Protect Your House When You’re on Vacation," 14 July 2017 Buy Photo Erica Tunnell’s tidy row home in the Overbrook section of the city was swarmed Saturday by environmental activists, students and public health experts. — Chris Mondics, Philly.com, "Activists, community groups test for lead," 24 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tidy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.